Ducati to use new engine at Laguna Seca

Following its home-race at Mugello last weekend, the Ducati team is currently in an important test period, where it will decide which parts to use in its new engine, which will be sealed just before the Laguna Seca race in under two weeks time.

Filippo Preziosi, General & Technical Director of Ducati Corse, spoke with motogp.com after the official MotoGP™ test at Mugello on Monday, after which the team would be staying for a further three days at the Tuscan circuit with its test team. The work to be carried out across the four days is extensive. Preziosi commented: "Now we are working on both the chassis and engine driveability. The problem is really huge. Last weekend was a step, but we know we have to work very hard to improve."

As announced earlier in the season, the race in Laguna Seca will see Ducati start using its number four engine, which is to be sealed before the race. This gives the Italian outfit the chance to use some of the tested items for the race. Preziosi outlined the plan: "In Laguna we will seal engine number four as planned. Engine number four is ready to use some additional parts we are developing. Some parts could be delivered directly to Laguna, and some other parts will be delivered in the following races. This depends on the final result, and only when we are sure that these parts give us an improvement in terms of performance."

The test did not start particularly well on Monday, with rider Valentino Rossi suffering an ECU failure, yet Nicky Hayden was able to put in some good laps and gave some good feedback. Preziosi was however pleased with both the riders’ and the team’s showing: "Monday was a half test with Valentino because unfortunately we had a hardware problem. So for safety reasons we stopped his test. So we got only half the information we need. It was a good test for Nicky, because we tested a lot of interesting things. At the end he was quite happy. To be honest, Nicky was good all weekend. Valentino did a wonderful race, starting unfortunately far back, but the pace was really good. Overall it was a nice weekend."

Apart from the items that could be introduced at the Laguna Seca round, Ducati is also working on further development in the four-day test, which Preziosi says will be made available for the next available testing slot. He did however remain tight-lipped on what the possible upgrades were: "Now we have to finish the test and try some new things. We will offer them to our riders in the next test they will do in August…but it’s a secret."